Onion Johnny

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The Onion Johnny is that stereotypical image of the French person (or someone disguised as a French person) found in the media, at least in the Anglosphere world. It typically consists of wearing a Basque beret, a horizontally striped shirt known as a marinière (usually white and navy blue, known as "Breton shirt" in the UK), and very often, a small red neckerchief. The trousers are open to wider interpretation.

Add to this a cigarette, a shopping bag with a baguette (and/or a bottle of wine, or croissants) sticking out of it, a thin moustache in the style of Maurice Chevalier (if it's a man), and generally rude behaviour, and you have the foundation of the French stereotype in the media — also known as the Onion Johnny. He often lives in, of course, Gay Paree.

This name, and this image, actually originate from Breton fishermen of the 19th and 20th centuries. Between the late 18th century and until around The '70s, it was customary for fishermen from Brittany (who lived close to the UK) to take a small boat, row — the distance across the Channel wasn't very great — and land in Cornwall to sell garlands of garlic and onions when they were in season.

Britain was a preferred market for these fishermen-turned-onionmongers because it was wealthier than France and their produce could fetch a higher price than in France. They travelled on foot or by bicycle and could remain on British soil for several weeks until all their produce had been sold.

Of note: Since the "Johnnies" were almost all Breton and spoke Breton, they often made their way up to Wales, where they could communicate quite easily with Welsh-speakers (both languages are Celtic of the Brythonic branch, and the one is easy to pick up if you know the other). These Breton peddlers are thus known as Sioni Winwns in South Wales and Sioni Nionod in North Wales ("Sioni" being Welsh for "Johnny" and "Wiwns/Nionod" being South and North Welsh for "Onions", respectively, i.e. "Johnny Onions" in either case).

The beret was said to be Basque, from the south west of France region where it originated, and was originally worn by shepherds. Once it became widespread in Brittany, it was mostly worn by rural populations. The marinière, on the other hand, was a typical underwear for sailors, always numerous in Brittany. French Navy soldiers still use this garment to this day.◊ Fisherman adopted the marinière mostly to keep warm. According to legend, it typically had 21 stripes, as an homage to Napoleon's number of victories. Still, stripes were mostly justified because they helped to distinguish in waves a man who fell in the sea. The Onion Johnny's profession explains why, in addition to these clothes, some Onion Johnnies in the media are depicted wearing a garland of onions or garlic around their neck. The nickname was given by the British, because "Jean" (John) was a common first name among the sellers.

As they were often the only French people many British had ever come across, it was assumed their outfit was typically French. In reality, this was far from true. Firstly, Onion Johnnies were peasants, which meant people from higher social classes were not dressed like this at all. Moreover, marinières became rarer as you moved inland. As for the Basque beret, it was reserved for the countryside working classes — people in towns preferred fedoras. Sometimes, the Onion Johnny outfit is simplified down to just the beret, as a shorthand for a French character in the media. In real life, the beret was popular among rural French men up until The '60s. It began to fall out of fashion and, by The '80s, was mostly only seen on elderly men, hence the nickname for those who still wore it: “Papy béret basque” (“grandpa with Basque beret”).

Today, those who still wear a beret in France tend to do so only in winter, and it is more commonly worn by women. They started wearing berets in the 1930s, but the Onion Johnny outfit was never feminine, as women were not typically involved in selling onions-nor were they in the navy. Nevertheless, English-speaking media often adapt this outfit for French female characters. The marinière is still appreciated by the seaside, particularly in Western France, by both locals and summer tourists, but becomes rarer the further you go from the coast.

In summary, the Onion Johnny outfit was never as typical as it is made out to be. The chances of seeing a French person dressed like this in Real Life today are close to zero — and even the authentic Onion Johnnies weren't always dressed that way,◊ making it a Dead Unicorn Trope.

Many French people, when they see this stereotype in English-speaking media, don't even recognize it as such. Sometimes, to Keep It Foreign, the French version of a work may change the character to Italian, or at least give them an Italian accent when the original was French. In such cases, people might even confuse it with a Venetian gondolier's outfit, since both share the marinière in common.

Subtrope of Culture Equals Costume. Related to Artsy Beret, where non-French artists or artsy characters are depicted with some or all of this getup. And to beatniks, who often paired their Artsy Beret with a striped shirt. Compare All Asians Wear Conical Straw Hats, Americans Are Cowboys, Sombrero Equals Mexican and Phenotype Stereotype, the tendency to represent French people in Japanese media as blonde and blue-eyed refined persons (but never with such apparel). Often overlaps with other French clichés like the French Jerk, Maurice Chevalier Accent, French Accordion, and the mime — another figure frequently associated with France ^note Because the most famous mime of all time, Marcel Marceau, was French. However, there are far fewer mimes in French streets today than the media would have you believe. — who also often wears a beret and a marinière (but usually in black and white). See also Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkeys, for another stereotype of the French as a whole.

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